Yes, and this has been the case for years. Cnet, ZDnet, PCmag have been user-hostile since long before AI summaries. Pop-ups, “before you go,” back jacking, all the worst.
The Verge is a surprise because it is relatively new and was relatively free of this crap for a long time.
They’re all just empty brands now. They totally caved to advertisers, and now only advertisers care about them.
I dare say AI’s popularity is a symptom of all this more than a cause.
Color schemes voluntarily added by the user to an app like vim, great.
All the more reason for developers to keep the app itself responsive to the user’s environment by default.
Don’t bake in elaborate visual choices. It’s a usability thing first and a style thing somewhere much farther down the list.
Keep it simple from the factory. Don’t get in the way of customization. Let the user’s environment do the work of adapting it to the user.